APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Court cases can be tense situations, and sometimes those situations can bubble over into violence.
Taylor Schabusiness, the suspect in a Green Bay murder case, attacked her attorney during a hearing in February.
It’s a reminder that courthouse safety in Northeast Wisconsin is a top priority.
Even though no one was injured in the Green Bay courtroom, experts gathered in Appleton on Thursday for the Court Safety and Security Conference for information on how to make court rooms safer.
“Safety in the courtroom throughout the state of Wisconsin varies,” said Tammy Johnson, Wisconsin Supreme Court Marshal. “Depends on which court house you’re in, depends on what the court’s needs are.”
Johnson says courtroom violence has increased, so need for security has also increased.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has asked for millions of dollars to protect themselves and I think that’s across the board for every state,” said Johnson. “It’s gone up and the vulnerability for judges has gone up.”
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, their data shows that the numbers of violent incidents in state courthouses has gone up every decade since 1970.
The number of threats and inappropriate communications against court officials in fiscal 2020, was 4,449. In 2021, it dropped to 4,261, but in 2022, it jumped to 4,511.
“Most people don’t want to be there, most people are not happy to be there and a lot of the people that are there have grievances, legitimate or not, and many of them are disturbed,” said Jim Morrison, Marinette County circuit court judge.
Morrison says outbursts can happen during any case.
“It’s the eviction cases, family cases, small claims cases where people are very much invested in the case, and can get very violent very quickly,” said Morrison.
He says prevention is the best way to combat courtroom violence, so security is important.
“We are not particularly concerned about protecting judges or court personnel, nearly so much as we are protecting innocent victims who are there because they have to be there,” said Morrison.
Presenters in the conference include experts in the areas law enforcement, state and federal attorneys, judges and other court services professionals.
